Crisis Communication And Management: Surviving A Public .

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Crisis Communication and Management: Survivinga Public Relations CrisisEric EramoA Projected Submitted in Partial Fulfillment for the Degree of Mastersof Arts, Communication and LeadershipPark UniversityOctober 6, 2009Copyright Eric M. Eramo C All Rights ReservedThe author may be contacted at ericeramo@yahoo.com

Core Assessment table of contents1. Communication Topics2. Task Analysis3. Annotated Bibliography4. Needs Analysis5. Measurable Learning Objectives6. Assessment for Trainees/Students7. Results of Assessment8. Presentation: Preparation, Action, and Reflection9. Activities/Participants Guide (including presentation outline)

Communication Topic“Real news is bad news — bad news about somebody, or bad news for somebody,”(Marshall McLuhan, Understanding Media, 1984. p. 17).Crisis management, or crisis communication, is (as evidenced by the quote above), nevera good thing. It is, however, a public relations’ professional moment to shine. A goodcrisis management plan is not only action during the crisis but preparation and reflection.Hiring a PR firm that deals with crisis management DURING a crisis is less advisable forall concerned, for you should already be prepared, and have a plan in place, before acrisis occurs. Time is always of the essence during a crisis. That is the reason behind thisconsulting session – to be ready for a crisis.

Task Analysis of What I TrainedThis task analysis would ideally be used as a consulting lecture/instruction to a PRdepartment without crisis management experience. Or, it could be taught/presented froma guest lecturer in a public relations course. It is designed to present to the staff of abusiness, whether they are PR professionals or not, (or PR students) how to develop acrisis management plan BEFORE the crisis occurs. The reason behind this is as follows:They are not caught off guard.The have a quicker response time to public inquiries.They have a response that is applicable to the crisis at hand.They can move on from the crisis both promptly and efficiently.

Annotated BibliographyAdubato, S. (2008). What were they thinking? Crisis communication; The good, the badand the totally clueless. Rutgers University Press. NJ.Steve Adubato, public relations expert, examines notorious crisis communicationblunders and what could have been done differently. It is an important book, for it showsthat a crisis can strike at any time and when it does you must be prepared to respondeffectively and quickly.Dezenhall, E. (2007). Damage control: Why everything you know about crisismanagement is wrong. New York, NY.Eric Dezenhall reviews many public relations disasters and presents alternatives to theway they were handled. Mistakes are pointed out, and ulterior option are presented. Manyof his ideas go against the grain or the traditional line of thinking in PR, and some goagainst what many of us were taught or trained to do. The book does a good job ofpointing out that every crisis is different and, therefore, must be dealt with differently.Beebe, S. A., Mottet, T. P., and Roach, K. D. (2004). Training and development:Enhancing communication and leadership skills. Allyn & Bacon.The textbook Training and Development is a “how-to” guide on the processes andprocedures used to train, consult and teach. It explores the differences between the latterthree, as well as the steps needed to describe your services and what to do after you’vemade the sale. Training and Development is not only a guidebook on how to reach yourdestination, but what you can do once you’re there – and beyond.Mitroff, I.I. (2001). Managing crises before they happen. Amacom. NY.A crisis is always around the corner, and being prepared for such a crisis is oftentimes theonly way to survive it. Not every crisis is predictable, but studying the crises of the pastcan help us deal with those in the present. Managing crises before they happen points outmany of these “modern-day” crises, and describes how those who manage these crisessucceeded or failed.Newsome, D., Carrell, B. (2001). Public relations writing: Form and style. Wadsworth.CA.Public relations is a broad subject, and the textbook Public relations writing: Form andstyle specializes in the area of how to write for public relations. The backbone of aneffective PR campaign is quality, concise writing – not bloated text like one may find inother courses. Some basics of PR are covered, but the text focuses on issues such asgrammar, writing styles, and aiming your writing toward select audiences.Vivian, J. (1999). The media of mass communication. Ayyln and Bacon. MA.

The media is a means to communicate. The textbook The media of mass communicationexamines the different areas of communication that are best used for what situation, andwhich ones to avoid. Many different topics are examined, such as public relations,entertainment, advertising and ethics. The media’s effect on society is also emphasized.Wilcox, D.L., Ault, P.H., and Agee, W. K. (1998). Public relations. Longman. NY.Public Relations: Strategies and Tactics is a beginner’s guide to the world of publicrelations, and it can also be used by pros in the field to research and refresh theirmemories of the all-important basics. Not only is public relations as a practice discussed,but the history of the craft is explored as well; from it’s beginnings in the late nineteenthcentury to modern times. The evolution of public relations is explained, as well as wherethe practice may go into the future.

Needs AnalysisAs a public relations/crisis management professional, it is your job to stay one step aheadof them by having the skills and knowledge in the field of public relations, and crisismanagement, to know what needs to be done efficiently and correctly. According toProfessors Lawrence W. Long and Vincent Hazelton, public relations is best defined as:A communication function of management through which organizationsadapt to, alter, or maintain their environment to for the purpose ofachieving organizational goals (Wilcox, Ault & Agee, 1998,p. 4).In relation, crisis management is best summed up by author Eric Dezenhall:Crisis management is the enterprise of telling ugly truths. Ideally, it is thepursuit of redemption in the marketplace. When one has done wrong,repentance is required. When one has been wronged, a vigorous defensemust be mounted (Dezenhall, 2007, p. 3).We live in a “gotcha” society where almost everything is captured; our actionsand words are recorded for everyone to see and watch over and over. Nothing is private,and the slightest misstep is fodder for the public domain. These crises can impede thefunction of an organization, which is to provide a good or service to a customer or client.From a public relations standpoint, a PR practitioner’s main job duty is to provideinformation – truthful, honest information, and to protect the company’s image. During apublic relations crisis the company’s image is under attack, either from the inside or theoutside, oftentimes by the company’s own wrongdoing. The people of the company arelikely not trained in crisis communication, and therefore need someone who can speak for

and defend them. A successful crisis management campaign can rebuild a company’starnished image and present a contrite or unified front to a skeptical public.At the onset, a crisis is never a positive occurrence. It is, however, a publicrelations’ professional moment to shine. A good crisis management plan is not onlyaction during the crisis but preparation and reflection. Hiring a PR firm that deals withcrisis management DURING a crisis is less advisable for all concerned, for you shouldalready be prepared, and have a plan in place, before a crisis occurs. Time is always ofthe essence during a crisis. That is the reason behind this lesson – to provide the guidanceand knowledge to be ready for a crisis.For this lesson I presented to a small group of associates and co-workers who all areemployed in state government. They were not all public relations/communicat do notuse these methods such as Blogs Message boards Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, andYouTube to prepare and deal with a crisis, those working against you will. Master thesetechnologies in your crisis planning stages. Also, create a “dark” website that can beposted right away. This is a website that will immediately replace your existing one thatdeals with the crisis at hand. Begin using a news-monitoring service to follow the newsmore closely.Establish media contacts. Know the names and contact info. of local reporters whohandle your area of business.Local newspapers and magazinesTelevision stationsInternet sites

Crisis Management-PreparationThe media is not necessarily your enemy,they can be your best friend.It is important to remember that the media is not necessarily your enemy, they can beyour best friend in a crisis. Many PR practitioners get their start in the newspaperindustry. Use their resources to your advantage, and spread “good news” items aboutyour company as often as you can. This builds a good reputation. The media’s job is toreport news – so give them news.At this time, please take a five minute breakPlease return promptly to complete your training session

Crisis Management-ActionA crisis has occurred. Do not panic! Stay calm. You have prepared.“There ain’t noscandal you can’thandle”.Act and believe that, asa company, you willsurvive this.Present an image ofcompany strength,confidence andunification.Thank you for returnin

Public relations writing: Form and style. Wadsworth. CA. Public relations is a broad subject, and the textbook Public relations writing: Form and style specializes in the area of how to write for public relations. The backbone of an effective PR campaign is quality, concise writing –

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